"The House will be in order. Members will be in their chairs. We shall be led in prayer today by Father Robert Zwilling who is with St. Mary's Catholic Church in Mt. Carmel. Father Zwilling is the guest of Representative Reis. Members and guests are asked to refrain from starting their laptops, turn off cell phones, and rise for the invocation and Pledge of Allegiance. Father Zwilling."
"Morning. If you would, please, I invite you to bow with me in prayer. Blessed are You, Oh Lord, merciful God, forever blessed and honored is Your holy name. We praise You; we bless You; we thank You, as we call upon You for we are nothing without You. We call upon You in our need for You continue Your work in us. We, the work of Your hands, need Your strength and insight to continue the labors You ask of us. We call upon Your aid for these Representatives and all who support them. May they represent well those who elected them along with the common good of all. We call upon You to grant them the courage to look with a keen eye and listen with a discerning ear, so that with an understanding mind and a compassionate heart they may decide all things are right. May they reach out for You, as they seek to come together with all whom they are called to work. Lord, many concerns weigh upon the minds of these Representatives and all with whom they work. We lift up to You all whom they love and all who love them. We lift up to You all who depend on them and all on whom them depend. And we lift up to You their prayers and petitions anew. May You take from them all that would hinder the work before them. May You give them the peace necessary to consider the hard questions and may You lead 09900069.docx 1 STATE OF ILLINOIS 99th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 69th Legislative Day 7/1/2015 them and help them to choose solutions that lead to the fullness of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Lord, fortify them for the day's work ahead, and keep them turned toward You and lead them to one another. We ask this and all that we need in Your great name, Amen."
"Be led in the Pledge by Representative Unes."
"I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all."
"Roll Call for Attendance. Mr. Brown."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Please let the Journal show that Representatives Batinick, Hays, Jesiel, Phillips, Sosnowski, Barb Wheeler, and Keith Wheeler are excused today."
"Mr. Clerk, please take the record. There are 109 Members present. We do have a quorum. The Chair recognizes Mr. DeLuca."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Point of personal privilege."
"Please proceed, Sir."
"Ladies and Gentlemen, like to recognize a former Member in the chamber, John Ostenburg, the mayor of the Village of Park Forest and a constituent. Thanks for being here. And the Village Administrator, Tom Mick, Village of Park Forest. Welcome to Springfield."
"Thank you. We just may be hearing from Mr. Ostenburg in a little bit, Sir. Mr. Jackson."
"Point of personal privilege."
"Go right ahead, Sir." 09900069.docx 2 STATE OF ILLINOIS 99th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 69th Legislative Day 7/1/2015
"I'd like for the House to join with me and welcome the mayor of Belleville that's with us, Mark Eckert."
"Thank you for being with us, mayor. Mr. Phelps."
"Personal… point of personal privilege, Mr. Speaker."
"Please proceed."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and Ladies and Gentlemen of the House. Today, I would like for you to join me in honoring and welcoming my Pages to Springfield. First, my beautiful daughter, Hunter, and her friend, Kennedy Hospelhorn. Thanks for being here, girls."
"Welcome. Have a great day with us. Representative Hammond."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Point of personal privilege."
"Go right ahead."
"I would ask that all the Members of the chamber join me in wishing my seatmate, Representative Mike Unes a very happy birthday tomorrow."
"Well, happy birthday. How fortuitous that you did the Pledge today. Mr. Clerk, Committee Reports."
Clerk Hollman: "Committee Reports. Representative Nekritz, Chairperson from the Committee on Personnel and Pensions reports the following committee action taken on June 30, 2015: recommends be adopted is a Motion to Concur with Senate Amendment #1 to House Bill 3484. Representative Nekritz, Chairperson from the Committee on Judiciary - Civil reports the following committee action taken on June 30, 2015: recommends be adopted is a Motion to Concur with Senate Amendments 1, 2, 4 and 5 to House Bill 4006. Introduction of Resolutions. House Resolution 627, offered by Representative 09900069.docx 3 STATE OF ILLINOIS 99th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 69th Legislative Day 7/1/2015 David Harris and House Joint Resolution 88, offered by Representative David Harris are referred to the Rules Committee."
"Chair recognizes the Majority Leader for a Motion."
"Thank you, Speaker. I move that the House now resolve itself into a Committee of the Whole for the purpose of a subject matter hearing on the government operations as of today, July 1, 2015. The hearing will be conducted in accordance with guidelines that have been established by the Speaker."
"You heard the Lady's Motion. Those in favor say 'yes'; opposed 'no'. The 'ayes' have it. The Motion is adopted." DISSOLVE INTO THE COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE DO NOW ARISE
"Mr… Representative Lang in the Chair. Mr. Brown is recognized."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Please excuse Representative Mike Fortner. Thank you."
"Mr. Fortner is excused. Mr. Sandack is recognized."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Can the Governor's staff liaisons come back into the chamber, and can I get a copy of that mysterious letter that's still, third time, hasn't gotten to me yet? I know the Committee of the Whole's over, but it'd just be nice to get something I've been promised twice." 09900069.docx 4 STATE OF ILLINOIS 99th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 69th Legislative Day 7/1/2015
"My understanding was that that letter was delivered to you, but if not, we will still get it to you. But you know… Mr. Sandack."
"You're understanding things. I wouldn't be asking for something I don't have, Lou. I don't have it; it hasn't been given to me."
"So quite a few state agencies have this letter, but we'll get it to you, Sir. Mr. Clerk, page 4 of the Calendar, under the Order of House Bills-Second Reading, there appears House Bill 693. Please read the Bill."
"House Bill 693, a Bill for an Act concerning revenue. This Bill was read a second time on a previous day. No Committee Amendments. Floor Amendments 1 and 2 have been approved for consideration. Floor Amendment #1 is offered by Representative Bradley."
Speaker Lang: "Before Mr. Bradley proceeds, Mr. Brown is recognized."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Republicans request an immediate caucus in Room 118."
"The Republicans will go into caucus in Room 118 immediately. House Members will enjoy themselves. The House will stand in recess 'til the hour of 2:30. The House will be in order. Mr. Clerk, House Bills-Second Reading, House Bill 693. Please read the Bill."
"House Bill 693, a Bill for an Act concerning revenue. This Bill was read a second time on a previous day. Committ… No Committee Amendments. Floor Amendments 1 and 2 have been approved for consideration. And Floor Amendment #1 is offered by Representative Bradley." 09900069.docx 5 STATE OF ILLINOIS 99th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 69th Legislative Day 7/1/2015
"Mr. Bradley."
"Thank you. This is an identical Amendment to the one that we voted on last week which was identical to the one we voted on the week before. It's identical to the Governor's tax relief or property tax relief language. This is identical. It's identical to what we did last week. I'd ask for an 'aye' vote."
"Mr. Brown."
"Thank you, Leader. Please excuse Representative Tom Morrison for the remainder of the afternoon."
"Thank you, Sir. Those in favor of the Amendment… those in favor of the Amendment will vote 'yes'; opposed 'no'. The voting is open. Have all voted who wish? Have all voted who wish? Have all voted who wish? One more time. Have all voted who wish? Mr. Clerk, please take the record. On this question, there are 46 voting 'yes', 22 voting 'no', 26 voting 'present'. And the Amendment is adopted. Mr. Clerk."
"Floor Amendment #2 is offered by Representative Bradley and has been approved for consideration."
"Mr. Bradley."
"This, again, is the Amendment #2 which is identical to Amendment #2 we did last week, which is identical to the Governor's proposals with regards to a local collective bargaining and prevailing wage. I do not support this Amendment, but this is identical to the one we voted on last week and the week before, which is identical to the Governor's proposal."
"Those in favor of the Amendment will vote 'yes'; opposed 'no'. The voting is open. Have all voted who wish? 09900069.docx 6 STATE OF ILLINOIS 99th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 69th Legislative Day 7/1/2015 Have all voted who wish? Have all voted who wish? Mr. Clerk, please take the record. On this question, there are 0 voting 'yes', 70 voting 'no', 31 voting 'present'. And the Amendment fails. Mr. Clerk."
"No further Amendments. No Motions are filed."
"Third Reading. Please read the Bill."
"House Bill 693, a Bill for an Act concerning revenue. Third Reading of this House Bill."
"Mr. Bradley."
"Again, this is Amendment #1, which is the property tax relief portion of the Governor's proposal. It is identical to his proposal. I would ask for an 'aye' vote."
"Mr. Sullivan."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Will the Sponsor yield?"
"Sponsor yields."
"John, what… what rendition is this of this song? Are we on the fourth verse? We on…"
"I think it's the sixth."
"We're on the sixth? That's a lot of renditions. Can you give me any insight why we continue to do this, you know, rendition, if you will?"
"It's been put out there as important or maybe a precondition of doing the budget. And we continue to give everyone an opportunity to vote for it."
"Haven't we already passed this over to the Senate at one point? Or a version of this?"
"I don't… I don't know that this got passed over to the Senate. I can't answer that. I'd be happy to have somebody try to get you that answer." 09900069.docx 7 STATE OF ILLINOIS 99th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 69th Legislative Day 7/1/2015
"Do you anticipate doing this every week?"
"Well, if this is what it's going to take to get the budget impasse settled, then we keep voting on it, I guess."
"Could maybe we amend it to add a couple of the other things that the Governor would like to see passed? Maybe we can get term limits on here and I'll vote on it or you know, something else."
"We just tried to do the two other things that were included in the Bill that was… I filed, which are identical to the Bill that was filed, which were indicated to be tied in there and they didn't receive any support. So this is all that's left of that."
"Okay. Well, I… I like talking to you. Thank you."
"Nice to see you too in July."
"Those in favor of the Bill will vote 'yes'; opposed 'no'. The voting is open. Have all voted who wish? Have all voted who wish? Have all voted who wish? Please record yourselves. Last time. Have all voted who wish? Mr. Clerk, please take the record. On this question, there are 43 voting 'yes', 22 voting 'no', 35 voting 'present'. And the Bill fails. Chair recognizes Representative Ives."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I rise to a point of personal privilege."
"Please proceed."
"If my colleagues would so indulge me, I wish to briefly reflect on a moment in history. One hundred and fifty-two years ago, on July 1, 1863, the Battle of Gettysburg began. Historical accounts give credit for the first shot fired in the battle to Illinoisan, Marcellus Jones. Marcellus Jones 09900069.docx 8 STATE OF ILLINOIS 99th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 69th Legislative Day 7/1/2015 settled in the area of what is now Glen Ellyn in 1858 and worked as a carpenter and a builder. When the Civil War broke out in 1861, he laid down his tools and enlisted, assisting materially in the rising of Company E Eighth Illinois Cavalry. That fateful day of July 1, 1863, at 7:30 in the morning, Lieutenant Jones borrowed a carbine from Sargent Levi Shafer of Naperville and fired at a Confederate soldier. Thus, began what is arguably the greatest battle ever fought on the North American continent. The Battle of Gettysburg, a victory for the Union, is considered the turning point in American Civil War. During this three-day battle, there were over 57 thousand casualties. Our state and our own Illinoisan, President Abraham Lincoln, proudly stood on the right side of history throughout this tumultuous time. It is imperative that we never forget the contributions to liberty that our state birthed and fought to maintain. That is why I rise today to remind this Body of the words so eloquently given by President Lincoln in the Gettysburg Address. 'Four score and seven years ago, our fathers brought forth on this continent a new nation, conceived in liberty and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal. Now we are engaged in a great Civil War, testing whether that nation or any nation so conceived and so dedicated can long endure. We are met on a great battlefield of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of that field as a final resting place for those who here gave their lives that this nation might live. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this. But in a larger sense, we cannot dedicate, we cannot consecrate, we cannot hallow this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who 09900069.docx 9 STATE OF ILLINOIS 99th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 69th Legislative Day 7/1/2015 struggled here have consecrated it far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note nor longer remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us the living rather to be dedicated here to the unpunished work… unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us, that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion, that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain, that this nation under God shall have a new birth of freedom and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.' I, personally, wish… wish God's blessing on all of you as we begin the July 4th celebration this week and recall the principles that began our nation and still unite us as a people of freedom. Thank you."
"Thank you, Representative. Mr. Ford."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. A point of personal privilege."
"Go right ahead, Sir."
"While we're on the great Abraham Lincoln… President Abraham Lincoln, I just want to call to the Body, given the fact that we are struggling with our finances, 150 years ago President Lincoln signed into law the progressive income tax. And so over a 150 years ago… 53 years ago, Abraham Lincoln established that. So I think that we should continue down the path that my Representative Ives spoke on and follow Abraham Lincoln and do some progressive income tax in Illinois."
"Amen." 09900069.docx 10 STATE OF ILLINOIS 99th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 69th Legislative Day 7/1/2015
"Thank you, Representative. Mr. Brady."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. A point of personal privilege."
"Please proceed."
"Ladies and Gentlemen, along the lines of our freedoms and what has been bestowed upon us, as we approach the Fourth of July, this coming Saturday, as America celebrates our freedom and the birth of our country, I'd like to congratulate one of our… one of my colleagues and your colleagues on his upcoming birthday on the Fourth of July, Representative Yingling."
"Happy birthday, Representative. We're all coming to your desk for cake immediately. Page 7 of the Calendar, House Bills-Second Reading, House Bill 4190. Mr. Clerk, please read the Bill."
"House Bill 4190, a Bill for an Act making appropriations. This Bill was read a second time on a previous day. No Committee Amendments. Floor Amendment #1, offered by Representative Currie, has been approved for consideration."
"Leader Currie."
"Thank you, Speaker. I wonder if I might, with the approval of the Minority Party, move the Bill to Third Reading and then discuss the items that are in Amendment 1."
"Just…"
"So, I would move… move adoption of the Amendment. If we could to that on a voice vote and then…"
"The Minority Party agrees. Those in favor of the Amendment will say 'yes'; opposed 'no'. The 'ayes' have it. And the Amendment is adopted. Mr. Clerk."
"No further Amendments. No Motions are filed."
"Third Reading. Please read the Bill." 09900069.docx 11 STATE OF ILLINOIS 99th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 69th Legislative Day 7/1/2015
"House Bill 4190, a Bill for an Act making appropriations. Third Reading of this House Bill."
"Leader Currie."
"Thank you, Speaker and Members of the House. This is a short-term fix for our urgent crisis-laden budget situation. This is a measure that will keep at least some of the state's lights on. The idea is to protect those programs that offer direct services to many of our citizens, including home health for the elderly and the disabled, including child care, various kinds of human service endeavors that otherwise are without funding as of today. We've heard testimony over the last several days that many agencies that provide these services don't know whether contracts will be renewed. The state agencies in charge of these programs have not yet been able to sort out what they think they might and what they think they might not fund. As well there are many agencies that themselves are on the brink of fiscal ruin, and it is unclear whether even if they sign a contract they and their staffs will ever be paid. So it seem to be incumbent upon us, as the grownups in the room, to say yes we will do short-term funding so as to get these critical programs over the hump and give us more time to sort through the differences between the various Legislative Members and the Governor's Office about how we are going to fund State Government in fiscal '16. I'd be happy to answer your questions. I think everybody in this room should be very concerned about what goes on back home and what goes on in some of our state facilities, for example, our veterans' homes, for example, the school for the 09900069.docx 12 STATE OF ILLINOIS 99th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 69th Legislative Day 7/1/2015 visually impaired. So I'd be happy to answer your questions, and I certainly would appreciate your 'aye' vote."
"Mr. Sandack."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Will the Lady yield for a few questions?"
"Lady yields."
"Leader Currie, the urgency of this matter struck me in your comments. What happens if this Bill passes today? What's the procedure next?"
"Well, the procedure would be that we would hope that the Senate would pass it as well and that the Governor would affix his signature as quickly as possible."
"My… my question was probably a little inartful. The timing of such urgency and exigencies. The Senate needs to read this Bill three times. Isn't that right, before it can be presented with and vote upon what we do today, if it passes?"
"And I believe the Senate is also working on a version of the same thing. And I don't know if that's a House Bill or a Senate Bill, but as you know both chambers are in Session at the call of the Chair. I think we can move on this quickly."
"Well, you kind of didn't answer my question, Representative. The fact is it has to be… if the Bill we're talking about today… you're always wanting to say let's just talk about the Bill that's in front of us… So the Bill that's on the board right now if it passes, it would have to be read three times in the Senate…"
"And the first day…"
"…and as you know there is no…" 09900069.docx 13 STATE OF ILLINOIS 99th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 69th Legislative Day 7/1/2015
"…the First Reading could be today."
"Excuse me. Excuse me. They're not in Session next week. Isn't that correct?"
"They may well be in Session next week. We may well be in Session next week. The point, Representative…"
"Well, I'm going to ask the Chair later on about scheduling, because this is important, Representative."
"Yeah, like I've said. That they, both the House and the Senate, are subject to the call of the Chair. With very short notice, we can be here. In fact, my understanding looking at our Calendar, is that this chamber is anticipating that we will be here next week, and I should imagine the Senate will as well. I don't really get the import of your question, Sir…"
"Well, the import of my question is…"
"…because without passing this Bill there is no budget today, next week, the week after, until people, other grownups in this Assem… in this legislation… Legislature and Executive come to the voice of sweet reason."
"Well, Representative, I appreciate the little bit of lecturing. The reason I ask the question and why it's important is because you said it was urgent and the Senate, right now, isn't scheduled to come back until July 13. Yes, they may be subject to the call of the Senate President. Yes, we're subject to the call of the Speaker. Frankly, we're just subject to the Speaker. So the fact of the matter is, it would be nice if there was some legitimate schedule given to us with a legitimate path set forth by grownups or otherwise. The fact of the matter is, the grownups, or at least the so- called grownups, maybe the self-appointed grownups, passed 09900069.docx 14 STATE OF ILLINOIS 99th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 69th Legislative Day 7/1/2015 the budget that was $4 billion out of budget. And for the last two days, Representative, we've been subject to show trials. I shan't use the other word that Representative Harris loves so much, but we've been wasting time. Your budget Bill is one-twelfth of a $36 billion appropriation. That's out of budget… out of balance and so, too, is the temporary measure you put forth. I don't think that's acting like grownups. I think that's more of the same. How about we actually discuss a budget that makes sense, that we can afford and that we can pass."
"There's nothing unbalanced about this approach. It's approximately one-twelfth of what we spent last year during the month of July. So there's nothing for… for these particular programs. So I think it's…"
"Of course, it's unbalanced, Representative."
"…it's completely balanced…"
"To… to the Bill. To the unbalanced Bill. One-twelfth of something unbalanced remains unbalanced. So the fact of the matter is this is not doing anything other than extrapolate… extrapolating out a $36 billion spend when we only have 32 billion to actually work with, unless you guys want to pass a tax increase on your own, which you've had plenty of time to do and haven't done. This is more of the same. It's embarrassing. We're wasting time. We've wasted time. It continues on. Grownups in the room, huh? How about we start acting like grownups? Vote 'present' or don't vote at all."
"Leader Currie."
"Just to point out that there's nothing unbalanced about this budget. This is not one-twelfth of overall state spending 09900069.docx 15 STATE OF ILLINOIS 99th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 69th Legislative Day 7/1/2015 either in the budgets that we sent to the Governor's desk nor in the money we appropriated and spent during the month of July 2014. Many programs, many services, many operations of State Government are not included in these numbers. If you want to vote 'no' vote 'no', but don't vote 'no' because you tell me this is an unbalanced budget. It's a balanced, sensible, responsible approach to the crisis that we currently are looking at. And I… and I can tell you that there have been other Members of this Assembly, not just from my side of the aisle, who have proposed precisely the temporary spending plan that you see before you. Now, at least one of them changed his tune after the Governor's Office came down earlier this week and said this is not a good idea. But this is not something that we have cooked up. This is not a strange, unusual approach to the crisis that many human service providers, many of our state facilities face, many of our safety concerns need to be met while we figure out how we fund State Government in fiscal '16. So I urge your 'aye' vote."
"Mr. Sullivan."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. To the Bill. My colleague has just pointed out that the Majority Leader said this is a short-term fix for an urgent crisis. It was an urgent crisis, I think, maybe our side of the aisle would have been included into the discussion, which we weren't, and that's… that's fine. But it's not even a Bill that could be passed today or this week or next week. And so it's interesting to use the words 'urgent crisis' with this. But I want to talk a little bit about the actual budget. You heard earlier the discussion 09900069.docx 16 STATE OF ILLINOIS 99th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 69th Legislative Day 7/1/2015 I had with the Attorney General's Office with Ann Spillane. I asked for a discussion on short-term budgets and constitutionality of budgets that are not balanced. Certainly we have the ability and even through the Attorney General's opinion to do a short-term budget, and we can discuss whether this is a full appropriation or whether it's unconstitutional based upon the law there. What I know about this one-twelfth budget is it… if you extrapolate that over the course of twelve months, it's equal or more than what you guys passed before. When you add in all the other things, and I… I see the Majority Leader disagrees with me, but our side of the aisle who I have tremendous respect for, Tim Nuding and the folks that work with me, that see this is if you extrapolate it. I'm not saying you're spending $37 billion here, but you're spending one-twelfth of $37 billion. But I want to remind you that what the letter said was we have found little support in the constitutional language for the proposition that the Legislature can send the Governor appropriations that exceed the Legislature's fund estimate. We certainly haven't done a fund estimate, and if you add this one-month budget into the totality of a budget, it is more than what we're going to bring in and is therefore unconstitutional on its face. And so, once again, should this pass, we are going to be passing an unconstitutional budget, and I'm sure the Governor will veto it. And so we're back to square one. And that's the bigger point. What are we doing? We're talking about different things that have nothing to do to move the ball forward. You haven't engaged with us on this and here we go. We get to… you get to go back to your constituents and 09900069.docx 17 STATE OF ILLINOIS 99th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 69th Legislative Day 7/1/2015 say, well, we passed a budget and we're promising you that you're going to get these services. And I know many of your Members have already said that. We did the right thing, yet you didn't. You didn't fund it. You didn't do it correctly. And we're going to continue down this for the interminate future and we'll see how it goes. But thank you very much, Mr. Speaker."
"Mr. Bradley."
"Leader, will the Sponsor yield?"
"Yes."
"Leader, did the… what did the Governor do like, I think it was last Thursday or Friday? Did he sign part of the budget?"
"He did. He signed the education budget."
"Signed the education budget?"
"He did indeed."
"Was that… was that based on a twelfth or a thirteenth or a…"
"That was… that was full-year funding for elementary and secondary education."
"Signed the education budget?"
"Signed the education budget."
"For a full year?"
"Full year."
"What did he do today? Do it… do it…"
"Today… all I know he did today was to do a lot of interfund borrowing…"
"Speaker…" 09900069.docx 18 STATE OF ILLINOIS 99th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 69th Legislative Day 7/1/2015
"Interfund borrowing to a very significant number. It was a… an offer we made to his predecessor who never took us up on it, never borrowed any money from funds that were lying fallow in the State Treasury. My recollection is that the current Governor criticized that opportunity during the course of a lengthy political campaign. But what he's now done is interfund borrowing."
"Now, I know I've been accused by politicians and bureaucrats not being able to count, but is my memory completely lost too and did not we sit in the budget oversight committee just a few weeks ago have the Governor's Office tell us that there was no way they were going to do interfund borrowing?"
"That's right."
"And wasn't that one of the bases for which we had to come together and do a bipartisan supplemental budget and do some things we really didn't want to do?"
"We… and we did that. We were very grown up about it as well."
"And today they… and despite all those statements that were made in that committee hearing of the budget oversight committee, today they did interfund borrowing."
"Correct."
"I've got one final question. This proposal you have today to keep government open for one month, which is far less than available revenues that we have for the year which no one can argue, given the signing of the education budget, given the interfund borrowing, that's there's not sufficient 09900069.docx 19 STATE OF ILLINOIS 99th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 69th Legislative Day 7/1/2015 money to do this? Does this provide for funding to track sex offenders?"
"Yes."
"To the Bill."
"Keep our community safe."
"To the Bill. I'd vote for this."
"Leader Durkin."
"Well, thank you, and I'm glad that everybody's getting a good laugh over there on that side of the aisle about process and know what's going on in this building. But the fact is, let's just go back in history and just remember how we got here. Let's look back at 2015, when you guys passed that unbalanced budget. We were gladly participated with you in January, February, and March to fix that problem, and we did. We did it with Republican votes. It wasn't with your votes; the ones that made that terrible decision last May. But folks, we're here again. We want to work with you to pass a responsible budget. We were not included again in this year's budget process. We are now have a $4 billion unbalanced budget, unacceptable on so many levels. We can make all the jokes we want about what the Governor's done or what he's funded, but right now, we're talking about 13 programs that you're saying is going… is going to save the state. It's not going to. The Senate's out. We think the earliest they'll be back to take this up would be July 13. So let's not kid ourselves. But folks, here's what, and Majority Leader Currie thank you for using the phrase 'the voice of sweet reason'. It means that four people sit in a room and you negotiate. It means you compromise. The Governor's made it very clear that 09900069.docx 20 STATE OF ILLINOIS 99th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 69th Legislative Day 7/1/2015 he's willing to negotiate a budget, which is responsible. One that could meet some of your objectives, but also meet his objectives as well. That's what we do in this business. And that's how adults work. Not today. But I'll say this, when you have 71 votes and you have the supermajority, I suggest you put them all on the board today."
"Mr. Harris." Harris, G.: "Thank you, Mr. Speaker. To the Bill. You know, earlier this week, you know, the… I believe we were instructed by the Governor's Office on how basic math works. And they, you know, taught us about subtraction. So what the Bill we have before us is it's about 2… $2 billion. And for those of you who are, you know, working on basic math, 2 billion is far less than $32 billion. Two billion, which is in the Bill that is before us today, added to the education budget, which the Governor signed into law, still is less than $32 billion. So, by passage of this legislation, you know, we would, by no stretch of the imagination, be conceived to spending more revenue than we have. And my name was used in debate by the Gentleman opposite because today, for the first time, he did not use the word 'sham'. He's fond of calling things 'sham' budgets and 'sham' proceedings. To the folks who are listening today, you know, who are worried about how their kids are going to be cared for in the coming weeks and months, you know, child care is not a sham. To the senior citizens who were here testifying yesterday and to the 39 thousand like them across the State of Illinois and in all of our districts, how they're going to receive home services, how they're going to be gotten out of bed, how they're going to bathe, how 09900069.docx 21 STATE OF ILLINOIS 99th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 69th Legislative Day 7/1/2015 they're going to feed themselves. That care is not a sham. To the disabled people who are worried about how they're going to conduct the activities of daily living for the coming weeks that this budget carries us over, that is not a sham. For the wards of the state, the DCFS kids, the young people who are… are in our charge who are in group homes, the foster parents who are raising them. The ability to continue to do that successfully, that is not a sham. To those in our community who are providing treatment for substance abuse and addiction, who are dealing with the scourge of heroin abuse, which we… we've talked about so much on this floor. Being sure that addicts receive treatment that young people are gotten into care. That is not a sham. Ladies and Gentlemen, you know, we can continue on, on our debate down here, but real people and real lives are at stake back home. I urge everyone to vote 'yes' on this legislation."
"Representative Williams."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. To the Bill. Both yesterday and today we've been hearing the same old talking points. We've been hearing complaints about how there's not being a balanced budget being passed, how the other side of the aisle was not included in negotiations, not part of any discussions, but I've got good news for you. You now have the Executive Branch, so if you really want a balanced budget, if you really want to prioritize the programs that are important to you, if you want the state employees to be paid, you can use the Governor's Executive Authority to do line item Vetoes and reduction Vetoes. Why is that fact continually being ignored down here? You just glance over that and go back to the 09900069.docx 22 STATE OF ILLINOIS 99th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 69th Legislative Day 7/1/2015 talking points, but that's the reality. We have a divided government represented by different Parties in the Legislative Branch and the Executive. How about using your power, therefore, to make the budget that you see fit and it reflects the priorities that you have, instead of complaining and utilizing the same old talking points over and over. Capitol Fax today said something about a 'no' vote on this budget is sure to lead to negative mail pieces talking about the politics, but things just got real here. This is not about politics. This is about policy; moreover, this is about people. There seems to be no sense of urgency on the other side of the aisle all of a sudden, and you've got to wonder is the shutdown, is this impasse a desired outcome? I certainly hope not. Vote 'yes' and do what you were sent here to do."
"Mr. Franks."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I haven't voted for a budget in I can't remember how long. The budget that passed here was unconstitutional. I didn't vote for it. The Governor's budget that he introduced was also unconstitutional, and I wouldn't even vote for that. It was billions of dollars out of whack, as is the budget that we passed; it was billions of dollars out of whack. We're all clear on that. The Speaker was clear on that. He said that; we get it. I heard some of my friends on the other side talk about this Bill right now not being constitutional, because it was somehow unbalanced and we'd be spending more than revenue. And they're relying on a letter that Mr. Nuding wrote today that I read, and he makes assumptions that are implausible. What he said was and I'll 09900069.docx 23 STATE OF ILLINOIS 99th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 69th Legislative Day 7/1/2015 quote from his letter, 'that the GOMB, the Governor's Office of Management and Budget, can make no other credible assumption that to assume that the majority of Party intends to ultimately spend the proposed FY16 spending levels within the agencies that are not represented in this Bill'. That is a blatantly incorrect argument. There is no budget, Ladies and Gentlemen. The only thing that we're trying to accomplish today with this Bill, what the Majority Leader's trying to do, is to have $2.2 billion spent one time on certain agencies that we've deemed to be an emergency. This is not a one- twelfth budget. This isn't a budget at all, I would say. This is an emergency measure to get us through for a little bit of breathing time. Now, listen, I agree with a lot of what the Governor's trying to do. I agree with him on his property tax relief. I agree with him on his term limits. I agree with him on his redistricting. He has a lot of good points, and he ought to get some victories there. But Ladies and Gentlemen, we're not talking about statistics, and this is not an abstract thing that we're doing here today. These are real people that if we don't provide them with the resources they need, real people are going to suffer, and they're going to suffer because we are putting politics over people. We can't do that. I'd ask everybody to take a deep breath, and remember why we're here with the people with the faintest voices who don't have the lobbyists. You know, I don't really care about when Pace came up here today and told us about their Doomsday issues. I could care less. But when I hear from people… we saw folks with developmental disabilities and physical ailments and we're… we indicate we're not going to be tracking 09900069.docx 24 STATE OF ILLINOIS 99th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 69th Legislative Day 7/1/2015 pedophiles. We're not going to be going after sex offenders. We're not going to be providing police. We have that obligation, and that's why I'm going to vote for this, not because I like it, not because I think it's good policy to do so, because I don't think that we have any other choice. And I'm encouraging those that are listening, all of the Leaders, please come together and if you can't come together, if there's for some reason we can't compromise and the Leaders can't do it, please punt it then to us. Because I believe that if we sat down and reasoned together that we would come to a compromise in very short order. So I would ask once we vote on this today and whether it passes, and I hope it does, but if it doesn't, I presume we'll be back here next week until it passes. But if they cannot hammer out an agreement, the four Leaders and the Governor, let us do it. Step aside, let us do it. Let's take back the government. Let's make sure that we're protecting the people that we were sent here to do and that's the charge that we were sent to Springfield. So I'd ask for your 'aye' vote today, and I'd also ask the Governor and the four Legislative Leaders to put aside their difference and to please make and to come forward… come forward with a clean… clean hands and a clean heart and open mind. They deserve nothing less."
"Mr. Demmer."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Will the Sponsor yield?"
"Sponsor yields."
"Leader Currie, I'm… I curious if you've seen what a revenue estimate for the upcoming fiscal year would be." 09900069.docx 25 STATE OF ILLINOIS 99th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 69th Legislative Day 7/1/2015
"I… I don't know if that's relevant to this Bill. This Bill is not a budget for the full year for the State of Illinois. This is a short-term budget to protect the most vulnerable citizens of the state, who depend upon government programs, government programs that are shutting down even as we speak."
"Certainly, though, we should have an understanding of how this one month for the spending would fit into the context of a full year's budget, correct?"
"This is… this is not a full month's worth of spending. This is particular programs targeted at services for vulnerable people. So you… you won't see the Secretary of State's full operation in this budget, this one-month budget. You won't see the operations of the Department of Revenue in this one-month budget. You won't see much of the operation of State Government in this one-month budget, which is why it doesn't make any sense for someone to say multiple this number by 12 and look, they're spending too much. That's not what this is about."
"So I'm glad you talked to quite a few of the programs that are not funded in this. Over the last two days, we spent time, considerable time, in a Committee of the Whole hearing from a variety of residents of Illinois about the impacts of not having a budget in place. So I'm curious, is there funding in this proposal for the Breast and Cervical Cancer Program?"
"I don't believe so."
"Is there funding for domestic violence shelters?"
"No, I'm sorry. There is not specifically for domestic violence." 09900069.docx 26 STATE OF ILLINOIS 99th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 69th Legislative Day 7/1/2015
"Is there funding for the autism project?"
"No."
"Is there funding for Early Intervention services?"
"No."
"Funding for dental services for those with developmental disabilities?"
"Yes."
"There's quite a list here of programs I have of people we've heard from over the past two days that are not addressed at all in this framework. So I'm curious, if we don't have a revenue estimate, we don't know how much money's coming in. We decide to spend money on certain programs and leave out others, how that's actually providing the kind of stability we need. I'd… I'd also ask you. You mentioned at the beginning that we're here in a crisis mode on the first day of a fiscal year without a budget. Senate Bill 2037, which was an appropriation Bill for Human Services, passed the House on May 29, and you immediately filed a Motion to reconsider on that Bill and held it until June 22. Had we had those 24 days after that Bill passed the chamber, had we sent it to the Governor in a timely fashion, would… couldn't we have averted this situation where we came past the deadline?"
"What would…"
"What was the point of the Motion to reconsider?"
"Well, the point of the Motion to reconsider was to hope that the Governor might come to his senses before he had the opportunity to veto the Bill. Now, remember, the Governor is the one who signed a full-year funding for education. One could argue, if you argue, that our budget was out of balance. 09900069.docx 27 STATE OF ILLINOIS 99th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 69th Legislative Day 7/1/2015 Certainly, it wasn't less so because of the education program. The reality is that we are here today, July 1. We heard from countless people the last two days about programs that are cut, programs that have not been renewed, about layoffs that will happen. Yes, there were many other programs that could have been the subject of House Bill 4190. Do you want me to make a bigger budget? I got the complaint from your side of the aisle was that it was already too much spending."
"Thank you, Leader."
"This is, I would say, not enough."
"Leader, to… to the Bill."
"But it is a step in the right direction. It is a step to say we will not close down your program. We will not shut out vulnerable, disabled people, seniors, children who are wards of the state, child care programs. I'm not going to shut the door on you today."
"Thank you. Mr. Speaker, to the Bill. I think that underlies the point of not passing a 12… a one-twelfth budget, a budget that cherry-picked certain programs to protect. The only way we can stand up for the people of Illinois, the only way we can protect all the vulnerable citizens, is to pass a responsible, comprehensive budget that deals with the entire year and not simply one that looks at a very narrow slice of state services and provides very unstable funding for the next month or so. As we've heard, we need to understand the context of what revenue we have in the state and we need to build a budget that lives within those means and provides that kind of assurance to all citizens in the state and not just a handful who the Majority Leader already had decided 09900069.docx 28 STATE OF ILLINOIS 99th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 69th Legislative Day 7/1/2015 warrants inclusion in this last minute Bill. Had we acted 24 days ago, and not let a procedural Motion to reconsider delay us, we wouldn't be in this situation today. We could have avoided this problem. The delay came from 24 days of these Bills sitting in some kind of purgatory before they were sent to the Governor's desk. We should have been negotiating that whole time. Instead, we did not. We did nothing. We waited. The moment has come today, and you've put us in that situation today. Mr. Speaker, should this Bill receive the requisite number of votes, I request a verification."
Speaker Lang: "Your request is acknowledged. Representative Nekritz."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I admit to being very, very confused. First I hear that this budget goes too far, it spends too much, and then I hear that it doesn't go far enough. It doesn't cover enough programs. It doesn't do enough. I hardly know which way to respond, which way to think about this in speaking to this, but if I could ask the Sponsor some questions about the Bill…"
"Sponsor yields."
"Representative, how… what is the total spending in… in this… in this proposal that you've put forward?"
"Yeah. So, it… when it comes to state general funds…"
"No. I'd like to know the total spending if you have that number."
"Two point two five billion."
"And do you know what…"
"And that includes federal funds; it includes other state funds. It's not all general revenue." 09900069.docx 29 STATE OF ILLINOIS 99th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 69th Legislative Day 7/1/2015
"So let's just assume for a minute that… that we're doing a 12-month budget here, as we've been accused of doing. And when you multiple 2.25 times 12, I believe that answer is 27, which is… You know, I… I know it's been a long time since I was in the second grade, but 32 billion is more than 27 billion. And that's what we're due to take in. Is that correct?"
"By a good deal."
"Right. So and then if I ask you just what is… what is the General Revenue portion of this, that is…"
"That is 1.06 billion."
"So, again, it's been a long time since I was in third grade, but 1 billion times 12 is 12 billion, which is certainly a lot less than 32 billion."
"Indeed, you're right."
"Wow."
"Good work."
"I think… I think we maybe clarified the math behind this. I know it was challenging for a lot of us in this chamber who feel that, you know, that numbers are difficult and we always don't respo… you know, we get to choose a lot… a lot of not understanding the math, but in this case I… case I think the math is pretty straightforward. We are doing what so many speakers have said so eloquently before me as to the reason for this. But I just wanted to clarify the math. I also want to respond… I feel like so many times over the last couple days I have heard, boy, we really want to work with you to get a budget. We really want to put a budget together. Let's focus on that. And I wholeheartedly agree. The problem 09900069.docx 30 STATE OF ILLINOIS 99th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 69th Legislative Day 7/1/2015 here is not agreeing on a budget. It's the extraneously things that are being demanded before we can talk about the budget. Let's put aside those extraneous things, focus on the budget, and I would guarantee we can all get that done. Thank you. Vote 'aye'."
"Mr. Phelps."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Will the Leader yield?"
"Sponsor yields."
"Thank you. Leader Currie, I've been getting a lot of phone calls going around the district and also going door to door, making a lot of phone calls that I do here every day and I got a lot of people and constituents that I represent that, many of them, I said have a lot of questions and listening right now. So if you don't care, indulge me a little bit and my constituents. If I vote 'yes' on this today, will I be taking care of the numerous veterans that I represent such as in Anna at the veterans' home or like Frank Mautino's LaSalle Veterans' Home?"
"Yes."
"Make sure that they get properly fed and the direct care that they deserve?"
"Yes."
"Talking about it around the Fourth of July I think that'd be a good thing, don't you?"
"Yes."
"Okay. What about the numerous calls I've been getting from correctional officers and guards. Now, this Bill, today, will get them paid, will they remain their benefit and make 09900069.docx 31 STATE OF ILLINOIS 99th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 69th Legislative Day 7/1/2015 sure that our facilities stay open and keep our communities safer, right?"
"That's exactly right, and that would be true for the Department of Juvenile Justice as well. And it would make sure that people in these correctional facilities have health care and get food."
"Okay. And I just had three State Troopers just call me a while ago. This will make sure that them and their families keep getting paid, and they will also be able to stay on the road, correct?"
"That is right."
"Well, Leader, I just have to tell you I appreciate what you're doing on this. I think a shutdown would devastate each and every one of our districts and our constituents. So I'm going to do my part today. I think we need more time. And I urge a 'yes' vote. And thank you for the work."
"Representative McDermed."
"Thank you. To the Bill. One of the things that I've heard yesterday and today, over and over, is that it's okay to let the Governor do our job, that he can use his Amendatory Veto and that he can make our mistakes and our unconstitutional actions okay. I came here to do my job as a Representative, that's to make a balanced budget and to make hard decisions. What's the matter with us that we're unable to have a discussion as adults where we're all invited to the table and actually make decisions about dividing up the money? We all know we don't have enough money for everything. So rather than doing our job, we're kicking it upstairs and putting the blame on somebody else, putting the burden on 09900069.docx 32 STATE OF ILLINOIS 99th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 69th Legislative Day 7/1/2015 somebody else to do our job. Ladies and Gentlemen, we are equal to this task. If we engage with good will, if we actually work and do our job, we could come up with a balanced budget. I would… been wanting to do that since the day I got here. I haven't been permitted to do it. I'm ready and willing to do it. Let's not ask the Executive Branch to do our job for us. I don't want to hear it anymore. I want to do the job. We can do it. I know we can."
"Mr. Wehrli."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I'd like to yield my time to Representative Sullivan."
"Mr. Sullivan."
"Thank you. To the Bill. The previous speaker said that we're dealing with third-grade math, so I'm going to try to break this down at a third-grade level for everybody, especially the previous speaker. If you annualize this Bill, 1.069 times 12 you get $12.8 billion. That doesn't end the story of what we're talking about, of course, and I certainly understand what the math is and maybe where she wanted to go down that path. But you should know this math 'cause the end result of what I'm going to say is what you're passing and you're going to have to defend, so please listen to me. You add to that $10.8 billion in the education budget. You add to that the remainder of pensions of 3.3. You add to that debt service of 2.1, transfers out at 2.5. You come up with an allocation of 31.5 plus lapsed spending you got about $2 billion left to run government. So the things that aren't included in this you have to add into that. That's roughly $5.4 billion. So when we talk about an unbalanced budget, to 09900069.docx 33 STATE OF ILLINOIS 99th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 69th Legislative Day 7/1/2015 make it balance all the other things, like all the people that came up here to talk about breast cancer and so forth, you would have to cut through their allocation by 62 percent to make it balance of the $33 billion that we have. So, Ladies and Gentlemen, that's pretty simple math. Even at a third- grade level, you can understand do you want to pass a budget where everything else, as you extrapolate this out over 12 years… 12 months, you'd have to cut breast cancer funding by 62 percent to make it balance; higher education by 62 percent to make it balance; AFSCME pay raise or AFSCME salaries 62 percent to make it balance. That's the math we're talking about, do what you want after that."
"Representative Kifowit."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Will the Sponsor yield?"
"Sponsor yields."
"Leader, I just have a quick procedural question before I talk about the Bill. There was a discussion about a 24-day delay. Does that mean that the Governor could not go online to read the Bill that was passed?"
"Apparently so."
"It… was it available for public view on the Internet and in other areas where the Governor could read it and become familiar with the Bill? That would…"
"Totally…"
"…delay…"
"…totally."
"So in essence, everybody could read the Bill regardless of your Motion or not. Is that correct?"
"Correct." 09900069.docx 34 STATE OF ILLINOIS 99th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 69th Legislative Day 7/1/2015
"So, that… that's kind of a strawman argument to talk about the delay. Would you agree?"
"I do."
"To the Bill. One… one of the things I want to point out is… is I got this wonderful document from the Taxpayers Federation of Illinois. And it says in its introduction, according to the Illinois Comptroller, the state has run a deficit in its General Fund every year since at least 1991. And I… I think some of you know the year 1991 was the year that Governor Edgar was elected. So, therefore, all the finger pointing in this room is unwarranted. We can point fingers across the aisle. What is important here, and to echo what was going on, is doing our job. And my job as a State Representative, I believe, in addition to what we do today, in addition to a budget, is to represent the people in my district and represent the service industries in my district. And I had a meeting on Monday about the service industries in my district, and I have to read a quote from Bette Schoenholtz from senior services that talks about that their organization represents frail, older adults who don't have the strength to stand up for themselves, and they are being used as pawns. My job is to stand up for the frail, older adults who need these services. My job is also to stand up for those individuals at the Ray Graham Association who need these services. This is not a budget. We can talk about all the different ways to manipulate the math; we can talk about all the different ways to manipulate the processes so that it continues to point fingers on either side of the aisle. The issue at hand is the frail and the weak and the disadvantaged and the people that 09900069.docx 35 STATE OF ILLINOIS 99th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 69th Legislative Day 7/1/2015 need continual services because we, as a society, have the responsibility to take care of those who, have no fault of their own, cannot take care of themselves. That makes us human. That makes us compassionate. And that makes it right. This proposal today is correct. There are many needs in society that are not being met because of this small temporary spending allocation. There are a lot of needs out there. And there are a lot of needs that unnecessarily are going to be going unfunded because of this stalemate. This stalemate because we are coequal branches of government, coequal responsibility in this job. It is not only the job of the General Assembly to work on this budget. It is the job of the Governor's Office to work on this budget as well. A Governor's Office that was giving tools to work on this budget as well. So while the finger-pointing wants to come in one direction, the fact of the matter… the fact of the matter is we are here today, because there is a shutdown in the government, because tools that could have been used to avoid this were not taken, because discussions on the budget only were not engaged on. And now, we are putting the frail, the weak, the individuals that need us the most. So my job is to represent those individuals as well and therefore, this budget is about those people and we can work on… this one month is about those individuals, and we should engage in working on the rest of the budget responsibly and on the subject of the budget only. Thank you, Mr. Speaker."
"Mr. Ford."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Will the Sponsor yield?"
"Sponsor yields." 09900069.docx 36 STATE OF ILLINOIS 99th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 69th Legislative Day 7/1/2015
"Thank you. I want to thank the Leader for putting forth this essential service budget proposal, and I'm intending to vote for it because I agree with the previous speakers. But my question is, if this budget proposal passes, will it only serve Democrat districts?"
"No."
"So to pass this will serve the entire state. And given the fact that… To the Bill… given the fact that this is Independence weekend, my question to the people that's going to vote against this is, what will the taxpayers get in Illinois with a shutdown? They will continue to pay taxes in Illinois, but they will get nothing for their tax dollars. And that's a shame."
"Leader Currie to close."
"Thank you, Speaker, Members of the House. First, a reminder that is our responsibility to appropriate money. The Governor has no authority to appropriate. He has authority to spend only that which we give him. So what we are doing today is exactly what we ought to do, exactly what we did when we approved the supplemental spending Bill in May. That's all that this is about. The question before us is that all the red herrings about this is one-twelfth. It is not one-twelfth. The extrapolations you've heard are phony. They are red herrings. The idea that we're either spending too much or too little, of course, that is debatable. But the reality is, this is about public safety and vulnerable populations. This is an effort to keep state services going to those who need them. The central question for the Members of this Assembly is this. Do you want to shut it down? Do you want to stop the 09900069.docx 37 STATE OF ILLINOIS 99th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 69th Legislative Day 7/1/2015 Illinois State Government from operating for the people or do you want to keep it open? Do you want to meet our responsibilities to the vulnerable, to public safety, to all those issues that should be at the forefront of each and every one of our minds? I urge your 'aye' vote."
"Leader Currie has moved the passage of the Bill. As a reminder to Members, Mr. Demmer has moved for a verification. And this Bill requires 71 votes. Those in favor of the Bill will vote 'yes'; opposed 'no'. The voting is open. Have all voted who wish? Have all voted who wish? Have all voted who wish? Please record yourselves, Members. Have all voted who wish? Mr. Clerk, please take the record. On this question, there are 67 voting 'yes', 1 voting 'no', 32 voting 'present'. And the Bill fails. Mr. Demmer, I presume that you're not persisting? Gentleman withdraws his verification request. Chair recognizes Mr. Sandack."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I rise on a point of personal privilege."
"State your point, Sir."
"And… Well, first a point of personal privilege and then a point of order. I'm going to ask one more time. I never got the letter. It sure would be nice if you delivered it. Consider it another humble request."
"I'll make you a deal, Sir. After Session, I'll give you my copy of the letter."
"That would be swell."
"Step over to my desk."
"Thank you. I will. But on a point of order, however, a serious one. Given what we just voted on, pursuant to House 09900069.docx 38 STATE OF ILLINOIS 99th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 69th Legislative Day 7/1/2015 Rules, I move for discharge of House Bill 4225 from the House Rules Committee. Under the House Rule 54(a)2, all Motions are assigned Standard Debate status and I wish to debate my Motion. Upon conclusion of the debate, I ask for a recorded vote on the Motion to Discharge. I ask for… under Rule 49 Article IV Section 8(c) of the Illinois Constitution, any vote shall be by record vote whenever 5 Representatives shall so request and by a show of hands, we have more than 5. There are at least 5 Members on my side that wish to have a recorded vote. As information from my colleagues, House Bill 4225 seeks to stop the automatic COLA on our wages that we get. So we get paid during this standstill. We get paid during this stalemate and we get a pay raise. So when you all want to complain about… that Kenny Dunkin likes his pay raise… I think it's unconscionable and I think we ought to debate it and I think we ought to let this Rule… let this Bill out of Rules. So, again, Mr. Speaker, I renew my request for a discharge of House Bill 4225."
"Mr. Sandack, the Chair rules your request out of order on accordance with Rule 18(g) which requires a certain petition to be filed with the Clerk's Office. Mr. Turner."
"Point of personal privilege, Mr. Speaker."
"Please state your point, Sir."
"Thank you. I know a lot of people will be celebrating this July 4, in the next coming days. And I just wanted to recognize my seatmate who will be having a birthday tomorrow. So let's wish Representative Will Davis a birthday tomorrow… a happy birthday. And I would encourage Members to… He's new to Facebook. Go to his Facebook page and write on his wall a 09900069.docx 39 STATE OF ILLINOIS 99th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 69th Legislative Day 7/1/2015 happy birthday and drop him a note or whatnot. So thank you, guys."
"Representative Ammons."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I rise on a point of personal privilege."
"Proceed, Sir… Ma'am. Sorry. Sorry, I apologize. Please proceed."
"I think I'll need to speak a little lighter."
"My… please proceed, my wonderful seatmate. Please proceed."
"Thank you, thank you. I just want to acknowledge a group of people who are traveling, if they would stand up in the gallery. It's called Three thousand miles for 30 heroes. It's a mission of peace. We certainly need peace around this country and to stop persecution. And they are riding their bikes from Los Angeles to Washington, D.C., in the effort to acknowledge the tremendous loss that has taken place all over the planet and the devastation of families. And I wanted to acknowledge them."
"Mr. Yingling."
"Point of personal privilege. I would be remiss to not wish my colleague, Representative Dan Brady, a happy birthday, who shares July 4 with me. So I don't know, maybe we'll be hanging out together this weekend."
"Mr. Sandack."
"Again, on my point of order, Mr. Speaker. I know we're trying to have some levity and we want to get out of here, but I specifically requested a Roll Call vote. We did file a Motion with the Clerk with respect to releasing from Rules 09900069.docx 40 STATE OF ILLINOIS 99th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 69th Legislative Day 7/1/2015 House Bill 4225. We did. But your attorney can shake their head in the negative, but it was filed. And I ask for a Roll… recorded Roll Call vote. This is a breach of the Rules to just summarily say it wasn't… it hasn't been filed. It was. This is an important issue. While we fight over the budget, the fact of the matter is we're getting automatic pay increases, automatic pay raises. That is unconscionable. We should debate this Bill. It should be removed from purgatory and given its day on the floor. And I ask for that. And I move to appeal the ruling of the Chair should you deny my request. And I ask for a recorded vote on that appeal."
Speaker Lang: "Mr. Sandack, Rule 18(g) reads as follows: Notwithstanding any other provision of these Rules, any Bill pending before the Rules Committee shall be immediately discharged and referred to a standing committee, special committee, or Order of Daily Calendar as provided in this Rule. If the principal Sponsor of the Bill files a Motion that is signed by no less than three-fifths of the Members of the both Majority and Minority Caucuses, provided each Member signing the Motion is a Sponsor of the underlying Bill, subject to the Motion and the Motion specifies, the appropriate standing committee, special committee or Order on the Daily Calendar, to which the Bill shall be referred. Sir, you did not file such a Motion. Your Motion was out of order. Mr. Sullivan is recognized."
"Oh, sorry. We were having a discussion. To the Motion. So, you're arguing that we weren't in time on a letter and that we need unanimous consent. And so, we get…"
"Sir…" 09900069.docx 41 STATE OF ILLINOIS 99th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 69th Legislative Day 7/1/2015
"…the unanimous consent from that side? We could waive the posting requirements and get unanimous consent, couldn't we?"
"Sir, I said not a word about unanimous consent. Rule 18(g) requires that three-fifths of each side of the aisle sign the Motion."
"What I find…"
"That's what the Rule says."
"…what I find ironic is that…"
"All other things you say are out of order."
"Okay. Well, then I'm just going to give a speech, then. Is that okay?"
"Go right ahead. We'll just…"
"Thank you."
"…wait for you."
"So, we're trying to debate not paying ourselves a raise and we can't get the other side, after we just talked about the problems of the state, the people that aren't going to get paid… the people that aren't going to get services, yet we can't get the other side of the aisle to work with us to deny a raise? Is that what the Chair is telling me right now? We're going to get paid. We're going to get a raise. And we just pass… or tried to pass a budget to continue services. And I can't get anyone on that side to work with us? Unbelievable that we're having this debate right now. Unbelievable."
"Representative Wallace."
"Thank you. I rise to the Motion actually."
"Representative, there is no Motion pending." 09900069.docx 42 STATE OF ILLINOIS 99th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 69th Legislative Day 7/1/2015
"Oh, so this…"
"The Motion was ruled out of order."
"Oh, they're out of order saying that was discussed."
"Well, you can…"
"Oh…"
"…you can raise a point…"
"…a point of personal privilege…"
"…on the out of order thing…"
"…about that order… out of order thing."
"…that we're not going to discuss, right."
"I'm glad today I can get a little smile and laughter 'cause what I had to say last time wasn't so happy. I think most of us who came here for our first term, after having watched this Legislature for years, can say that we are absolutely disheartened by this process. At least, I can say that. And the arguments are arguments in which no one has taken into account the very people that sent here to rep… sent us here to represent them. I will be willing to work with everybody on that side of the aisle, have no problem with anyone in this chamber. But we have to continue to get… not continue… we need to get back to what it is we came here for. And we need to get back to who it is we represent. So if we need to take up whatever this issue is, fine. As a single mother, I'll go on the record as saying I will work on that. I will do whatever needs to be done so that other struggling parents in my district don't have to struggle. But at some point, people are going to actually have to set their egos aside, as I said earlier, and meet everybody halfway. That's it. Thank you." 09900069.docx 43 STATE OF ILLINOIS 99th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 69th Legislative Day 7/1/2015
"Mr. Demmer."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I move to suspend Rule 18(g) so that this Bill may come to the floor."
"Mr. Demmer, that Motion needs to be in writing. Please file it with the Clerk. Representative Bryant is recognized."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I join my colleague in saying I actually came here to… to do some work and to work with the other side of the aisle. In fact, I had a conversation with a colleague today where she asked what could be done. And I said, how about if we return to some working groups. How about if we return to working on a real budget. In addition to that, I'm a little frustrated by the fact that we do have to take a raise, apparently, and I would like to know what the procedure is for keeping that from happening. I, for one, would like to forgo my raise. So I would like to know who would join me in that, if we can make that happen."
"Representative Hammond."
"Thank you. Mr. Speaker, a point of personal privilege."
"Proceed, please."
"Mr. Speaker, time and again, not just this Legislative Session but numerous Legislative Sessions, the Rules are suspended at the request of Members on your side of the aisle. We are asking that the Rules be suspended by this side of the aisle, so that we can vote on a Motion to not accept a COLA, a cost of living increase allowance, on the pay that we are receiving when payment for providers and others are in question. I request that you suspend the Rules to accommodate that request, Mr. Speaker." 09900069.docx 44 STATE OF ILLINOIS 99th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 69th Legislative Day 7/1/2015
"Mr. Davidsmeyer."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. A quick question. If I wanted to suspend the Rule to get rid of the requirement to file a written request, would I have to file a written request?"
"The answer is the Rules need to be filed, Sir."
"How much time do I have to file that?"
"We're still in Session, Sir. The Chair recognizes Mr. Demmer."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I filed the written Motion to suspend the Rules."
"Mr. Demmer, so I know I'm the one who told you to file this Motion, if you read the last sentence of Rule 18(g)… want to read it with me, Sir?"
"All right. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the portion of the Rules that says this subsection may not be suspended."
"No, Sir, you can't do that. But the Rule says that this subsection may not be suspended, so your Motion is out of order. Mr. Sandack."
"Point… a point of personal privilege."
"Another one?"
"Yes."
"Okay."
"And I'm sorry I have to take up your time. It's been fun, right? We get a good chuckle out of this stuff our attempt to bring a real issue out of Rules. And I guess, when you have the conch and all the power, you get to giggle when you get to use… abuse and abuse the Rules to your pleasure. It's… I know, it's so disheartening to hear the truth. I'm 09900069.docx 45 STATE OF ILLINOIS 99th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 69th Legislative Day 7/1/2015 going to read from a periodical last year, Herald… a Herald & Review article that says as follows: 'A local proponent of cutting lawmaker salaries said she didn't know she'd be getting a raise on July 1 when she voted in favor of the state spending plan. State Representative, fill in the blank, said she believed initial drafts of the state budget included language calling for Members of the General Assembly to contin… continue taking 12 furlough days per year. But because of a 20… 2013 lawsuit, Legislative Leaders i.e. Democrats, stripped the demand for furloughs out of the budget saying the practice in the past five years was unconstitutional. I did not know that I, when I voted for this budget, that there was a pay increase. This Representative, then a freshman, who retired as a schoolteacher, when she launched her 2012 campaign made cutting General Assembly paychecks a cornerstone of her campaign.' Isn't that timely? Now, that when I ask to reduce an increase, an increase, when some people may not get paid, when we have… we can't communicate ourselves and you guys all giggle when I bring up something that should come out of Rules. I'm holding on to someone that's gone to her constituents and said, we ought to cut the General Assembly's pay. And so, now, when I ask not to cut her pay or anyone's pay, but to not take a COLA, while the rest of the state suffers, not one hand goes up, but the giggling meter was off the charts. Some speaker earlier was talking about adults in the room. Now would be a good time to have everyone act as an adult and take iss… each issue seriously, because these are serious times. And they really 09900069.docx 46 STATE OF ILLINOIS 99th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 69th Legislative Day 7/1/2015 do need serious thinkers and serious leaders who can act seriously and be consistent. Thank you, Mr. Speaker."
"Representative Ammons."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I rise for a point of personal privilege."
"Proceed, please."
"So as we listen to the debate on this issue, a couple things jump into mind as we had our Committee of the Whole today. I was reminded from the discussion about paying state workers the federal level. And what came back to mind… I thank the Leader on the other side, who just reminded me of this… is during the campaign season the conversation was about rolling back the state workers to the federal minimum wage. A certain person campaigning said that, no, we pay too much on our minimum wage and it should be $7.50. And then, step back from that, saying, well, I didn't really mean it. They also talked about privatization of state services, but we don't really mean that either. That's just for campaign talk. And then we talked about we were going to, you know, take LDGF from local governments. But we didn't really mean to do that today either. And now, we're talking about, while since we made sure state workers can't get paid by not, you know, line item vetoing the budget you sent us, we also don't want you to get paid. So you would rather have all of the people in the State of Illinois suffering, as opposed to working on a budget that would actually pay state workers and yourself. Some of you are independently wealthy, some of you are. I live in a moderate community, some of us call the 'hood'. I'm very happy about the community that I come from and I 09900069.docx 47 STATE OF ILLINOIS 99th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 69th Legislative Day 7/1/2015 represent. And for me and for my family, I am here to work. I come every day. I don't miss Session. And I thought… know the state workers come to work every day, and they don't miss Session, but you allow this process to go forward and not do what you have the a poe… the real power to do and this is where the… the discussion stops at. If I send you a household budget that doesn't meet my husband's requirement and my husband says, you know what, Carol, well, since you sent me a budget that's over this month, I'm not going to pay any bills at all. That's what we're saying. We're saying, well, since you didn't send us a budget we wanted and it wasn't in line the way we suggested, we're not going to pay any bills. We're just going to send it back and on top of that, we're going to make political theater, so people can say that is so bad that those Legislators get paid and we don't. I would rather you pay them and pay all of us due to all of the hardworking Legislators in this House and in this Capitol and all the staff that work here, as opposed to playing games and saying, well, why don't you just go home and not wor… you know what, as a matter of fact, I want you to work and don't get paid. I don't want you to actually have a paycheck because those Democrats didn't send us a budget that we could line item veto, that we can suggest another. As a matter of fact, I sat in committee on Elementary & Appropriations with Democrats and Republicans, and I don't recall even in that committee one Republican bringing a number to that committee, not one time. I sat in Human Services and the Republicans on Human Services refused, they refused to participate in a process of saving seniors and now, you want to say to us, 09900069.docx 48 STATE OF ILLINOIS 99th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 69th Legislative Day 7/1/2015 that we should not get paid and they should not get paid because that is unfair. I suggest the Republicans, every last one of you, so you give your paychecks back to the state. And those of us who need to pay our meager little living that we should pay our meager living and you give yours back. That's what I suggest you do."
"Mr. Butler."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And I assume before long one of the folks on that fine side of the aisle will make a Motion to adjourn and when that Motion is addressed, pursuant to House Rule 49, I would like to move that… House Rule 49 says any vote of the House shall be recorded be by record vote whenever 5 Representatives shall so request. I assume I probably have 5 in the back row here. I would request a recorded vote on the Motion to adjourn. Additionally, when that Motion is entertained, I would like to have… be able to lead the debate on that as well. Thank you, Sir."
"Mr. Butler, your request is noted, but it's out of order because we're not on the Motion to adjourn. But perhaps when we get to the Motion to adjourn, you can hit your light. Leader Currie."
"Just to clarify for the record that the… during the term we may not have an increase or a decrease in our salaries. There was no salary increase in any Bill that has been before this chamber. And in addition, beyond our salaries, there was not an appropriation for anything more, even before the Governor vetoed the budget Bills. So just to make it clear for the record that we're not talking about a salary increase, 09900069.docx 49 STATE OF ILLINOIS 99th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 69th Legislative Day 7/1/2015 and we are not talking about votes to appropriate additional sums."
"Representative Ives."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I rise to a point of personal privilege."
"Go right ahead."
"I… I came down here to represent taxpayers who I think are the most underrepresented people in the state. And I will tell you, anybody who is watching the debate today, anybody, will tell you one thing about the Rules under which we operate. And that is that they are not government by the people, or for the people, or with the people, or anything about the people of the State of Illinois. These are rules made for the political class that has been running Illinois for decades. And I think we need to get past that. Thank you."
"Representative Golar."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. To the Body in regards to the furlough days. Actually, this Body, some of those individuals may not be in this room today, we took a vote in 2009 to take 12 furloughs a year. We did that for 5 years. Twelve furlough days a year. And so it's important that we understand we have to make the sacrifice. And so today, as we go into this discussion over COLAs, I can't say that I would support that. But I can say that we have made the ultimate sacrifice in this Body when we had the economic downturn. When we knew that the stimulus money that President Obama sent us was gone, when we knew that we had to actually do a tax increase to help us. We've made those sacrifices. What are you willing to sacrifice? Thank you." 09900069.docx 50 STATE OF ILLINOIS 99th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 69th Legislative Day 7/1/2015
"Mr. Dunkin, you made proceed."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. A point of personal privilege. Maybe I… I didn't see this in the Session book… our House Rules, but are we allowed to donate our paychecks, our cost of living. We can donate that back to the state, right? Yes, we can. Any and every one of us. So I'm happy our Majority Leader highlighted the fact that there was no cost of living in the budget that we passed this year, zero. So it's a nonissue. So I hope many of you Members go ahead and file your… your Motion in Writing to the Speaker, but there's no money there. There was no cost of living adjustment. I think the real question that we need to be addressing today or at least we missed our grand opportunity to provide essential services here in the State of Illinois. Why wasn't that supported? So fire, police, the sick, the elderly, some of the people who could care less about the foolishness that we are in and presenting in this chamber and the other chamber as well. They could care less. So, today or last night, many people who service our communities across this state, they're without a paycheck. They're without services. There are no summer jobs. There are no homemaking services. Plenty of layoffs all across the state. When you're impacting citizens in the state, they could care less about what your Party affiliation or label is. So the real question was, how in the world did we pass up on an opportunity to do right by the people who pay our salaries, who pay for services, who as Representative La Shawn Ford highlighted, there is… we don't discriminate when it comes to taxing anyone. So we're not going to do any service delivery here in the state, taking 09900069.docx 51 STATE OF ILLINOIS 99th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 69th Legislative Day 7/1/2015 care of some of our most vulnerable citizens. We're not going to do that today, said maybe wait until next week. But we're going to continue to tax them today, tomorrow, this weekend and next week and at some point, we're going to have to get our act together. It's embarrassing. It's sad. It's pathetic. It is not a Democrat or Republican issue. But to see a Bill leave this chamber less than the required Majority to help our citizens, who we extract money from every single day, is a major travesty. And shame on us who voted 'no'; shame on us who voted 'present'. It's pathetic. And at some point all of us are going to have to do our job. We're going to have to grow up as adults and be responsible. It's sad. Essential services. The Bill failed because we are playing petty politics. Shame on us."
"Mr. Clerk, messages from the Senate."
"Introduction and First Reading of Senate Bills. Senate Bill 2040, offered by Speaker Madigan, a Bill for an Act concerning appropriations. First Reading of this Senate Bill."
"Mr. Riley."
"Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I… I just want to say that, you know, it… it's funny someone mentioned a few weeks ago, you know, about political theater. And I think there was a cut to Illinois Film Tax Credit. I think there's enough of those credits maybe to go around. We have to be sure, you know, in the midst of all the dis… 'Sturm and Drang' that goes on between our sides, to remember why we're here. We all work for the taxpayers of the State of Illinois, every last person, all 13 million as our state has grown, is a taxpayer. Everyone 09900069.docx 52 STATE OF ILLINOIS 99th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 69th Legislative Day 7/1/2015 has an interest. There are times we can be self-deprecating and talk about what our responsibilities are or what they're not. But some people were talking about what our responsibilities are or should be. I remember debate where folks all of a sudden get self-deprecating say, well, you know, I'm not qualified to tell a local school district what they should be doing. Then you shouldn't be down here because that's what your job is. We have a daunting job. We have a daunting responsibility. And it is a responsibility. It is something that only 177 of us in the state do. You should always revere it and take it seriously. We're going to have differences of opinion. That's… that's what it's all about. But you know, a few times today and by some… some freshmen I've heard, you know, I don't know what we're doing. And you know, I… I don't know what… then you shouldn't be down here. I've sat on 9, 10 committees as many of you have. I've been all over committees this year. Now, somewhere I saw people on both sides of the aisle working in those committees, in judging the efficacy of legislation, in coming here and voting. So where have you been all these months? We have accomplished a lot together. We can do more. We can get this budget impasse solved as long as we deal with the budget. But I have to tell you personally, don't insult the process by saying I don't know what I've been doing. I don't know what I'm supposed do, because then you shouldn't be here. We've accomplished a lot during the time we came down here in January until now. We can get this dealt with, but be clear what your responsibility is, not only to your own 09900069.docx 53 STATE OF ILLINOIS 99th GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TRANSCRIPTION DEBATE 69th Legislative Day 7/1/2015 constituents, but to all of the people of the State of Illinois. Thank you."
"And now, pur… leaving perfunctory time for the Clerk, pursuant to House Joint Resolution 85, the House is adjourned 'til Wednesday, July 8 at the hour of 5 p.m. or until the call of the Speaker." 09900069.docx 54